Disease severity linked to depression risk in OA patients

medwireNews: More severe structural disease is associated with an increased risk for depression among patients with radiographic knee osteoarthritis (OA), according to study results presented at the EULAR 2018 meeting in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

“The progression [of OA] and worsening of symptoms over time may lead to the development of depression, but it is unclear what components of OA disease severity contribute to the risk of depression in this population,” lead author Alan Rathbun (University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA) told the press.

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In an analysis of data from 1652 participants of the Osteoarthritis Initiative, the researchers found that patients in the highest severity quintile for joint space width were more than twice as likely to develop depression as those in the lowest quintile.

The researchers also identified an association between impaired physical functioning and depression risk, with those in the slowest quintile for gait speed having a twofold increased risk for depression compared with those in the fastest quintile.

“Given the results of our study, we believe that to effectively treat individuals with radiographic knee OA and comorbid depressive disorder, it is necessary to use a combined treatment strategy of two interventions delivered in parallel to simultaneously target each condition,” said Rathbun.